Brock Lesnar: Future Of The Heavyweight Division

I want to first preface this article by saying that I am not a Brock Lesnar fan and have not watched professional wrestling since I was a kid. I am simply writing this article as an objective look at the facts of Brock Lesnar and why there is so much hype around the guy.

Wrestling: Lesnar's main skill set

The earliest information about Lesnar's wrestling comes from his senior year at Webster High School in South Dakota. In his senior year, his wrestling record was 33-0. While attending the Bismarck Junior College in North Dakota, Lesnar won two consecutive heavyweight tournaments at the 285lb weight division in the National Junior College Athletic Association. By the time Lesnar left Bismark Junior College, his wrestling record was 56-3.

After jumping ship and moving to the University of Minnesota, Lesnar went 24-1 in his inaugural year while there but lost via 3-2 decision in the NCAA heavyweight finals. His second year proved to be even better when he went 26-1 with his only loss coming via the number 1 ranked heavyweight wrestler in the Big 10. Brock was able to avenge his sole loss in the NCAA tournament where he faced the same opponent he lost to earlier in the season. This time Lesnar won and became the 2000 NCAA Heavyweight wrestling champ. His collegiate wrestling record stands at 106-5.

With the background and success that Lesnar has, he could easily be ranked as one of the best wrestlers that the UFC has in their stable of fighters.

Football: Lesnar's Second Attempt at Competition

After leaving the WWE to find actual competition, Lesnar decided to try his hand at football and tried out for the Minnesota Vikings. Brock's giant frame made him a perfect prospect for football. Lesnar's stats when he was at training camp included a 475lb bench press, 695lb squat, 4.7 second forty-yard dash, 10 foot standing broad jump, and a 35 inch vertical leap. All while weighing in at a staggering 290lbs.

To put some of those numbers in perspective, Emmit Smith, Vince Young, and Jerry Rice did not run the forty as fast as Brock did.

Putting it all Together

Given all of this, I think you'll be hard pressed to find any other fighter in the UFC with Lesnar's strength, explosiveness, speed, aggression, or hunger for success. Combined his aforementioned attributes with his wrestling credentials and you have yourself an anomaly. This is why people think that Brock Lesnar is "The Next Big Thing" in the Heavyweight division.